1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus and a control method of image forming apparatus.
2. Description of Related Art
It is important for an image forming apparatus to maintain the surface condition of an image carrying member such as a photoreceptor drum in an optimum condition in order to maintain the quality of a toner image to be transferred to a recording sheet uniform.
It is a customary practice to apply a smoother (lubricant) on the surface of the image carrying member in order to improve the transferability of the image carrying member and to stabilize the surface condition of the image carrying member. The application of the smoother is implemented by a roller that is contacting a bar of the smoother. The roller scrapes up the smoother and the scraped up smoother is applied on the image carrying member.
Such a technology of smoother application to the surface of the image carrying member using a roller is disclosed, for example, by Japanese Publication of Patent Application No. 2009-294248. The particular technology pertains to detecting the load of the rotation of the image carrying member during the image forming process and changing the roller's rpm relative to the detected load, in order to control the amount of the smoother to be applied to the surface of the image carrying member. In the particular technology, the load of the rotation of the image carrying member is detected by the electric current that runs through the motor that drives the image carrying member, and the roller's rpm is changed depending on the detected current by having the roller's rpm which is determined in correspondence with the current in advance.
However, such a prior art is a technology concerning a control during formation of images and is not a technology concerning smoother application to the surface of the image carrying member while the system is in an image forming standby status.
The image forming standby status means a status where the image carrying member is rotating for forming the next image, while the developing member that supplies the developing agent to the image carrying member is not operating. In other words, although the smoother continues to be applied on the image carrying member's surface, the developing agent is not supplied. Therefore, in the image forming apparatus of the prior art, the condition of smoother application on the image carrying member's surface varies from the condition during the image formation so that the amount of smoother applied on the image carrying member's surface can become inappropriate during the image forming standby status.